Tag Archives: using twitter as a professional

It’s the reason some of us back slowly in the other direction while others of us don’t hit the sheets until three a.m. We are keenly aware of the ramifications of tweeting well, tweeting consistently, and choose to duck out or dive in.

I get that. In fact, I commend you.

There has been a backlog of times in the last two years, specifically, when I thought, “Gosh, this Twitter thing is a lot of work.”

But if you know me – especially in 140 characters or less – you know that Twitter has built friendships and collaborations for me that would never have existed outside of the World Wide Web.

So let’s talk about that. As creative, emotion-driven and passion-seeking creatures, that is a glorious attribute for a social network.

Finding handwritten letters of encouragement and support in your mailbox will make every unnoticed tweet feel like a grain of sand in the ocean of your life. (P.S. That’s what it is anyway.)

To be fair, it’s helpful to dissect both the pros and the cons of Twitter for creative makers and writers and designers and so forth.

(+) Twitter

+ Every response is direct; your customer service never ever has trouble defending itself after you publically address the good and the bad on a person-by-person basis.

+ Your PR strategy just got personal, too. You’d like to sit pretty on that homepage? By learning about the media outlet and its reporters, engaging with them in the least creepy way ever, pitch time doesn’t feel like Doomsday.

+ You know who loves you and why. When the same small army re-tweets you or responds to your questions, it becomes pretty clear which relationships to focus on. Before Twitter, we didn’t know who was passing along our work to their friends and talking about us over dinner; now, we almost do.

(-) Twitter

– The more it works, the more time it requires. When people engage with you, it’s in your best interest to respond to them in a somewhat timely fashion. But eventually, your engaged audience may grow beyond what’s humanly possible to address. And then, you’ll have to rethink how you react.

– It might not house your demographic. Twitter is a beautiful equalizer and powerful connector, but it requires a strategy. If your goal is to showcase visual content, you might be better off using a less text-heavy medium. It’s great practice for crafting swoon-worthy sentences though.

– It shouldn’t be, and can’t be, the only way you build relationships. First connections via Twitter are excellent, but it’s easy for those connections to fall off the map if neither party makes an effort to continue them. It’s the same as any other relationship: you can’t ignore your boyfriend for six months while you parade around Europe and expect him to meet you at Baggage Claim.

Where does Twitter fall for you on the social media spectrum? Are you a naysayer or a proud supporter and why?